Out of habit, both of us woke up at 6:30 AM, feeling (thankfully) none-the-worse for yesterday’s unaccustomed exercise. (Kathy just reminded me that it’s not unaccustomed to her!) Prying apart the Venetian blinds, and looking out the window, I was sure that there had been some mistake. The ground was entirely covered with an inch or two of snow!
Today we had planned to go back to the park and take a closer look at Zion. I wanted to hike to the Lower Emerald Pools and see the pool at Weeping Rock. Maybe we’d hike between the Grotto and the Zion Lodge. With trepidation we walked the block to Oscar’s Cafe for breakfast, the snow still lightly falling, carefully watching our feet on the snowy, becoming slushy, sidewalk.
Instead of serving breakfast at our B&B, they provided us with vouchers for breakfast each day. Oscars was unpretentious, but the food was very good. I had a Zion (read Denver) omelette, while Kathy had an enormous black bean breakfast burrito. It’s late afternoon now, and she’s still raving about it.
After breakfast and a trip to our room, we set out again for the Springfield Shuttle. On the way, we stopped at a local outfitter, and I picked up a souvenir Zion ball cap, mainly to keep my raincoat hood from falling down over my face.
At the shuttle stop, we had a nice conversation with a family from Phoenix, who were also on a one-week Spring Break vacation with their two teenage boys. We commiserated with them about how much nicer Zion would be in the middle of April or the beginning of May. But, with Spring Break, you just don’t have that choice.
When we got to the Zion Center, Kathy stopped into another outfitters and picked up some Murino wool socks. Both of us are pretty apprehensive about the cold when we get to Bryce. Then, we got on the shuttle and headed up the canyon, in the mist and low clouds. You couldn’t see the tops of any of the cliffs.
Rather than go to the end of the line, my plan was to get off at the stops where I had scoped out hikes that were within the range of my ability. Our first stop was Weeping Rock, where the sun finally came out, and where we had our first disagreement.
I wanted to walk up to the waterfall, but Kathy thought it was too snowy and slushy. Together we walked over to the beginning of the (paved) trail. As we stood there, we watched an older gentleman walking down. Half way down, he started to slide down the trail, as if he were skiing on his boots. With visions of a broken hip and a medivac helicopter flying me into St. George, I realized that Kathy was right, and we got back on the bus.
Because we couldn’t really hike, we got off at the Zion Park Museum stop. The sun had come out by this point and it was a little warmer. We sat outside and ate the sandwiches which we had packed for the day. It was really pretty pleasant, sitting outside, watching the clouds cover and uncover the mountains, and a few deer grazing in the meadow.
After lunch, we watched the short film on “Saving Zion” in the museum, and then walked around together examining and talking about the exhibits. Then, around 3:30 we got back on the shuttle to head home, where we read our books, had some coffee and cookies, and I finished up today’s blog early. In a few minutes, we’ll head out for dinner and an early evening.
An unexpected day, that, thank the Lord, did not involve any emergency medical events.
Thursday morning we got up early, at around 4 AM. While Kathy was getting ready, I went downstairs to turn on the weather report. The KTLA 5 weatherman said, “Surprise! We said the rain was going to be over, but we were wrong. Sorry.” Luckily we were leaving town.
We were on the road by 5:30. The rain was steady, but moderate through Corona, with rain and fog through the Cajon Pass. When we reached Hesperia, the skies cleared and we saw sun for the first time in seven weeks. (Ok, that might be a small exaggeration.)
Outside of Barstow, we stopped at Peggy Sue’s 50’s Diner, which bills itself as the oldest diner on Interstate 15. I’m not sure if they are right. Breakfast was good. Kathy had a veggie omelette and I had chicken-fried steak. I was so hungry, I forgot to take a picture of the food.
We got to Springdale (the town nearest the Zion National Park entrance) about 3:00PM and checked into our B&B (the Novel House at Zion). It’s a cute place, with each of its ten rooms named (and decorated) after a different author. We’re in the Louis L’Amour room.
For the last few years, driving has been restricted in the park. The only way to visit the scenic drive is via the park shuttle. Since it was only 4PM, we decided to head over and ride the length of the park, planning on a more leisurely exploration tomorrow.
The Springfield Shuttle takes you to the park, so we didn’t have to drive over to the Visitor’s Center and park and we are glad we took the shuttle because the visitor center parking lot was filled. The free shuttle runs every 10-15 minutes and there is a stop just across the street from our B&B. It’s very convenient.
The Springfield Shuttle dropped us off at the park’s Visitor’s Center, where we switched to the Zion Shuttle for the trip up the canyon. Last summer Kathy bought a lifetime National Parks pass, so we both got right in (although they made her sign it, since she didn’t do that when we bought it).
The ride up the canyon in the late afternoon light was beautiful. There were fluffy clouds over the tops of some of the cliffs, and when the sun broke through it lighted the top of cliffs in bright oranges, yellows, and reds.
Half way up the canyon there was some construction, so the shuttle had to wait. We were sitting near the driver, so we asked him what was going on. He said that on Tuesday, during the rain storm, a rock had fallen onto the road and landed on a manhole cover which took out all communications and power to the entire upper canyon. The folks who were staying at the in-park Zion Lodge spend two nights with Coleman lanterns. I’d say that’s an authentic old-west experience, (although I’m not sure those who paid a premium for in-park lodgings would see it like that).
Once we got past the construction, we continued on the shuttle to the last stop, the Temple of Sinawava. This rock formation was named by Douglas White, a publicity agent for the Union Pacific Railroad, to honor Sinawa, a spirit in the Paiute tradition.
Everyone had to leave the shuttle at this last stop, and the driver warned us to be back by 7:15 when the last park shuttle departed going down-canyon. If we missed it, we’d have to walk back.
Since we had two hours, we decided to try the River Walk trail up to the Narrows, on the North Fork of the Virgin River. It’s marked “easy” in our guidebook (the only hikes I consider at my age). The Narrows itself is closed until later in Spring, when the water flow in the river is reduced.
The trail was nice (and paved), although muddy in spots. However, because of the sandy nature of the mud, it wasn’t slippery (or icky). There were quite a few people still out and about, but it wasn’t crowded at all. Both of us were a little tired (2.2 miles round trip) and were happy to get back on the shuttle.
We got back to the Visitor’s Center a few minutes after 7, and went to pick up he shuttle to Springfield. Unfortunately, we’d misunderstood the timing. The last Zion shuttle departed at 7:15, but the last Springfield shuttle left at 7:00. We just missed it.
After our two mile hike earlier, neither of us were looking forward to walking another mile back to town, but it wasn’t too bad. We saw several herds of deer, browsing in the back yards of the houses we passed on the way.
We got back to our room at 8 PM, and neither of us wanted to go out to dinner. We made some sandwiches from the sliced deli meats we had brought for our lunches. Along with a few tangerines and some Trader Joe’s cookies it was a great dinner.
By 9 we were both sound asleep. Tomorrow, we’ll give the park a more thorough examination.
In two weeks Kathy and I are going to Utah to visit seven national parks in seven days. We’re going to start with Zion then go to Bryce. Next we’re going to visit Capital Reef for a night, and then a night in Canyonlands National Park. After that, we’re going to see Monument Valley, and then finish up at Mesa Verde National park in Colorado. It’s gonna be a busy spring break.
In the Fall, I’ll be taking a semester off and Kathy and I will spend September and October in Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy. As you can see, I’m already underlining my Rick Steve’s book.
On Monday morning we woke to partly-overcast skies. We had breakfast at our hotel (so-so) and drove off for our first stop, the Franconia Flume Gorge in New Hampshire's Franconia Notch State Park. Because it was a state (instead of a National) park, we had to pay an admission fee, but it was worth it. The trail through the gorge is two miles; a piece of cake for energetic youngsters like Kathy and I.
After a quarter mile (steeply down hill), we came to the Flume Covered Bridge. Built in 1886, and restored several times since, it is one of the oldest in the state. This bridge was built across the scenic Pemigewasset River, which means “swift or rapid current” in the Abenaki Indian language. We paused at the bridge to let a large group of older Mennonite couples go past us. (And also, so I could catch my breath.)
Past the bridge, the river falls over an exposed, large outcropping of Conway granite, called Table Rock. The rock is 500 feet long and 75 feet wide. Apparently inner-tubes are not allowed, but that was all I could think of.
After Table Rock, the gorge narrows and the sides began to rise steeply. To allow visitors to traverse the Flume, the Park Service has constructed an elaborate series of boardwalks, which are removed each winter, so they won't be destroyed by ice falling from the sides of the flume.
The Flume Gorge starts out deceptively easy, but rapidly gets steeper and narrower.
Along the sides of the Flume, trees, ferns, and plants grow out of the sheer sides of the granite and basalt walls.
The sides of the gorge are stunning. I think my iPhone pictures look pretty good, but I can imagine what a professional photographer with a 4x5 camera could do.
Besides being narrow, the last section before the top is quite steep. The Flume was discovered in 1808 by 93-year-old “Aunt” Jess Guernsey when she accidently came upon it while fishing. At that time, a huge egg-shaped boulder hung suspended between the walls. The rock was 10 feet high and 12 feet long.
While we were there, another couple volunteered to take our picture, which I don't especially care for. When I take selfies, I can momentarily forget, that, like an iceberg, most of my volume is below the neck line.
At the top of the Flume is a close view of Avalanche Falls. The 45-foot waterfall creates a roaring sound as the Flume Brook enters the gorge. The falls were formed during the great storm of 1883, which washed away the hanging boulder.
I liked this video of the falls. It was "slo-motion" on my iPhone but looks normal when I posted it to YouTube.
The Falls marks the half-way point of the hike. Once past the Falls, the trail loops to the north, through Liberty Gorge (cut by the Pemigewasset, not by the Flume Brook). Along the trail, there were informational placards explaining what kinds of wildlife we should expect to see. This was the Bear Cave and just over the bridge was the Wolf's Lair. (You had to climb on your hands and knees to go through that. We took the longer way around.)
Just past the Bear Cave is the Sentinel Pine Pool and Bridge. The Pool is 40 feet deep and 150 feet in diameter, and is surrounded by cliffs 130 feet high. On the cliff above the Pool, Sentinel Pine stood for centuries, another 175 feet high and 16 feet around. It was uprooted in the hurricane of 1938 and now forms the base for the covered bridge. Upstream from the Bridge you can see this view of the Pemigewasset.
Even though the park placards promised moose, bear, deer, raccoon, and so on, the only wildlife we saw were some chipmunks, who didn't seem especially wary of the many visitors.
Since the trail was a loop, we were elated to find hat we didn't have to climb back up the original decent to the river, but came back out to the visitor's center from above. One of the distinctive aspects of the last part of our walk were the many large glacial boulders, with trees and vegetation growing out of them. Very Stephen Kingish.
Our stop for Monday Night was the Inn on Putney Road in Brattleboro, Vermont. From Franconia Notch we cut across to Interstate 91 from Woodstock, New Hampshire. (There are a lot of motorcyclists in Woodstock, NH. I tried to Google to see if it was something like Sturgis, but didn't come up with anything to explain why. I would have understood it on a weekend, but this was Monday and it seemed like 75% of the vehicles parked in the main part of town were motorcycles.)
Once we hit I-91 we stopped at the Vermont Spot Country Store in Quechee Gorge, Vermont, to say high to Paul Billings' brother-in-law Chris Goodwin who owns the store. Paul is a missionary with our church, Calvary Chapel.
We stopped for a late lunch in Lebanon, New Hampshire. (I-91 follows the Vermont side of the Connecticut River, along the border between Vermont and New Hampshire. When you pull off for food or gas, you'll often find that you've crossed into New Hampshire. We got to the Putney Inn a little after five and, after unpacking, we were really too tired to go out again.
I've never stayed at a traditional New England Inn. I think I was expecting Bob Newhart, with Larry, Darryl, and Darryl. The building was not unlike the set on Newhart, with comfortably historic public areas. But the large cast of eccentrics was entirely missing.
Our breakfast on Tuesday morning was very creative, with French-pressed fresh-ground coffee, a unique watermelon and berry fruit salad with feta cheese, strawberry pancakes, sausages and potatoes. It was a treat and much different than the serve-yourself cereal and pastry buffet we are often used to. If you are in the area, I'd definitely recommend a stay here.
Our final stop, before heading back to Catonsville and then off to California was at the Cornell Inn in Lennox, Massachusetts, only about an hour from Brattleboro on the Interstate. However, my Moon New England Road Trip guidebook said that we shouldn't miss a trip along the Mohawk Trail from Shelbourne Falls to North Adams (both in Massachusetts).
The road was beautiful and, again, we found them almost deserted. (My current theory is that the GPS algorithms are having a real impact on traffic, routing people away from secondary roads. I really had to work to get Google to take me the way I wanted, by putting in secondary stops.) This is the statue about half-way to North Adams in the Mohawk Park.
Lennox is the home of Tanglewood, summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Edith Wharton's estate, The Mount, and numerous foodie destinations. That wasn't what we were interested in. We came to see the Norman Rockwell Museum, because it had been recommended by our friend Jasmine Alnutt. We began with a short, fifteen-minute film of Rockwell's life, followed by a half-hour tour of his studio. (The picture above, of course, was from when he was still alive.)
On the lower level of the museum, they have displayed all of Rockwell's Saturday Evening Post covers. from 1914 until 1963. On the upper floors, you can see many of the original paintings that were used to create the covers. This is his three-level self-portrait.
One of his most celebrated covers, and one which Kathy especially loved, was the Golden Rule issue with the paraphrase of Jesus' word from Matthew 7:12, "Do unto others and you would have them do unto you."
In addition to Rockwell's work, the museum also was hosting a topical exhibit, but that really wasn't what we wanted, so we drove the few miles to downtown Stockbridge (memorialized in many of Rockwell's paintings), to have lunch.
Unfortunately, all of the recommended restaurants from our guidebook, served lunch from 12-2:30 and dinner from 4:30-8:30. It was 3:30 pm, and we were famished. Fortunately, even though the Main Street Cafe was just closing, we slipped in as their last customers.
After our early dinner, there was one more stop we had to make. Five miles south of Stockbridge in Greater Barrington is the Guthrie Center of Alice's Restaurant fame. The center was already closed, but I had to get a picture in front of Alice's Restaurant. That was on my bucket list.
As we drove back to Lennox, we'd come full circle on our trip. More than two weeks ago we started hiking the Appalachian Trail at Bull's Bridge in Connecticut on the Housatonic River. Now we were driving up the same river in Massachusetts, at dusk, singing along to a song we both remembered from fifty years ago. It's been a wonderful trip. We got everything we wanted.
We left our motel in Bar Harbor before breakfast so we could take in the 8:30 am (second) service at Calvary Chapel Bangor. We got to sit with Jeanette Graves and after the service we had the joy of visiting with her husband, pastor Ken. Joining Jeanette and Ken at their home church has been bucket-list item for Kathy.
There was a great turnout for the services with lots of families and small children.
After church we drove through Bangor and stopped for some photos at Stephen King's old house, which now houses his foundation for aspiring writers. (No, you can't go inside, unfortunately.) When we first got there we were the only people parked on the street. In the time it took to take a few pictures, four more cars pulled up with people wanting their picture in front of the creepy fence. And really, can you blame them?
Our drive to New Hampshire took about four hours. Half way there we stopped at Annette's Country Skillet Diner in Naples, Maine (near Long Lake) for lunch. (My foot kept falling asleep). Lunch was fine, but I felt a little like I was in a time warp. We've been paying $20 each for lunch; here it was $10.
We spent the last half of our drive following the Kancamagus Highway from Conway to Lincoln. We got out to stretched our legs at the Albany Covered bridge, a favorite spot for fly fishing.
This is a Paddleford truss bridge built in 1858. You can see the trusses as you drive through it.
A little further down the road we parked and walked a ways up Rocky Gorge. Our pictures, though, don't do the river justice.
We got to our hotel in Franconia New Hampshire around 5 pm. Franconia is the town where Elisabeth Elliot lived in the late 1960s. After we checked into our hotel, we were still hungry, so we drove eight miles up the Interstate to the town of Littleton and had some Thai food at the Chang Thai Cafe. (Again, the prices were very reasonable.) This is the town where Eleanor H. Porter wrote Pollyanna, whose statue stands in front of the town library.
On Saturday morning, Kathy and I went into town and rented two e-bikes for half the day so we could ride on the Acadia National Park's Carriage roads. The roads and bridges, created by John D. Rockefeller in the 1930s, are automobile free, but electric bikes are allowed.
The roads are fine gravel, so they were a little harder to ride on than the Cape Code Rail Trail which is all paved. From where we picked up the bikes in town it was about a mile and a half to the park entrance at Duck Creek Bridge.
Because we had only half of a day, we decided to first do the Eagle Lake loop to the south of the Park entrance (instead of riding all the way to Jordan Pond, which we would have done if we had all day).
The roads were not crowded, but there was quite a bit of climbing. It wasn't flat at all. Even with the electric bikes, it was a workout for me. Kathy thought that it was fine.
Because we rode a shorter loop, we arrived back at the Park entrance with an hour and a half left on our rental, so we decided to head north under one of the iconic Rockefeller bridges and ride around the Witch Pond loop.
This was also a pretty ride and the pond was lovely. All around Eagle Lake there were signs that said no swimming, because it was a public water supply. There were no such signs around Witch Pond, but I can't imagine anyone swimming in it.
We got the bikes back just in time and I was pretty tired, but not as completely wasted as when we rode the whole day. We picked up sandwiches at Subway and went back to our room for lunch and some recuperation. Around three, we headed back to the Park in our car to drive the Park Loop Road.
The two-lane, one-way, 27-mile loop covers most of Desert Island. You can stop and park in the right lane. At the end of the island is a feature called the Thunder Hole. We got out and Kathy took this video.
Early in the morning we're heading for New Hampshire, stopping off in Bangor, Maine for church.
